JP2003071367A - Liquid treating device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a liquid treating device which accelerates a liquid sending speed of treating liquid. SOLUTION: A coating film forming system 1 which is one embodiment of this liquid treating device is provided with a coating unit COT which forms a coating film on a substrate and a chemicals supplying unit CS which supplies chemicals to the coating unit COT, and the chemicals supplying unit CS has a chemicals tank CT, a pressurizing pump 53 which pressurizes the inside of the chemicals tank CT, a delivery pump 54 which sends the chemicals to the coating unit COT, a delivery pipe 55 which is attached to the chemicals tank CT so as to send the chemicals to the delivery pump 54 when the inside of the chemicals tank CT is pressurized by the pressurizing pump 53 and a cart 60 which mounts the chemicals tank CT and the delivery pump 54. The chemicals tank CT and the delivery pump 54 are allowed to be adjacent to each other and are mounted on the cart 60, the length of a pipe 57 which sends the chemicals from the delivery pipe 55 to the delivery pump 54 is shortened and, thereby, the liquid sending speed is enhanced.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a liquid processing apparatus for performing liquid processing such as coating a coating liquid such as polyimide on a substrate such as a semiconductor wafer to form a coating film.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a semiconductor device manufacturing process,
After forming a predetermined circuit pattern on a semiconductor wafer by using a photolithography technique, polyimide or the like is applied to the formed circuit pattern to form an insulating layer.
The polyimide film is formed, for example, by applying a predetermined amount of polyimide solution to the substantially center of a semiconductor wafer on which a predetermined circuit pattern is formed, and then rotating the semiconductor wafer to spread the applied polyimide solution over the entire semiconductor wafer. After forming a film, heat treatment is performed so as to evaporate the low temperature solvent contained in the polyimide solution, and further NMP (normal methylpyrrolidone) contained in the polyimide solution.
It is formed by heat treatment at a higher temperature to evaporate a non-volatile solvent such as. After this heat treatment, the semiconductor wafer is cooled to a predetermined temperature and sent to the next processing step.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory view showing an example of a liquid feeding method when a polyimide liquid is applied to a semiconductor wafer. For example, the storage source of the polyimide liquid is usually a gallon bottle 9
A commercially available product in which a polyimide solution is sealed in 1 and hermetically sealed is used as it is. Inside the gallon bottle 91, the liquid delivery pipe 9
The gallon bottle 91 is housed in the pressure resistant tank 92 such that the tip of the nozzle 3 is inserted. When compressed air or the like having a predetermined pressure is sent from the pressure pump 94 to the pressure resistant tank 92, the pressure resistant tank 9
The pressure in 2 rises and the polyimide liquid is sent to the liquid sending pump 95 through the liquid sending pipe 93. The liquid feed pump 95 feeds the polyimide liquid fed from the liquid feed pipe 93 to a coating nozzle 96 for coating the semiconductor wafer with the polyimide liquid. Liquid transfer pipe 9 between liquid transfer pump 95 and coating nozzle 96
7 is provided with an opening / closing means such as an electromagnetic valve 98, and by controlling the opening time of the electromagnetic valve 98, the coating nozzle 96
It is possible to control the discharge amount of the polyimide liquid from.

When the gallon bottle 91 filled with the polyimide solution is used, it is necessary to replace the gallon bottle 91 with a new gallon bottle 91 after the polyimide solution is completely consumed. In the past, the gallon bottle 91 was replaced by selecting a location with good workability.
No attention was paid to the place of arrangement of No. 5, for example, it was fixedly provided in a dead space or the like in consideration of the footprint and volume of the device.

[0005]

However, if the liquid feed pump 95 is fixed in a dead space or the like, the pipe length between the pressure resistant tank 92 and the liquid feed pump 95 becomes long. In this case, the viscosity of the polyimide solution is 3000 cps-12
Since it is as high as 000 cps, it becomes difficult to increase the liquid sending speed due to an increase in pressure loss and the like, the discharge time of the polyimide liquid from the coating nozzle 96 becomes long, and it is difficult to increase the throughput. .

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a liquid processing apparatus capable of increasing the liquid feeding speed of a processing liquid.

[0007]

That is, according to the present invention, a liquid processing unit for supplying a predetermined processing liquid to a substrate to perform liquid processing, and a processing liquid supply for supplying the processing liquid to the liquid processing unit. And a casing that holds the liquid treatment unit and the treatment liquid supply unit, the treatment liquid supply unit includes a tank capable of filling the treatment liquid, and the treatment liquid filled in the tank. A liquid processing apparatus, comprising: a liquid feeding pump that feeds the liquid to the liquid processing unit; and a cart that mounts the tank and the liquid feeding pump adjacent to each other.

According to such a liquid treatment apparatus, the length of the pipe between the tank and the liquid feed pump can be shortened, and thereby the liquid feed rate of the treatment liquid can be increased. This makes it possible to shorten the coating time of the processing liquid per substrate and improve the throughput of the liquid processing.

[0009]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Here, a coating film forming system for forming a polyimide film on the surface of a semiconductor wafer will be described.

FIG. 1 is a schematic plan view showing a coating film forming system 1, FIG. 2 is a front view thereof, and FIG. 3 is a rear view thereof.
The coating film forming system 1 includes a cassette station 10 which is a transfer station, a processing station 11 having a plurality of processing units, and a wafer W which is provided adjacent to the coating film forming system and which performs a predetermined process on the wafer W (not shown). An interface unit 12 for transferring the wafer W to and from the processing apparatus.

In the cassette station 10, a plurality of wafers W to be processed are loaded in the wafer cassette CR in units of, for example, 25 wafers, and are loaded into the coating film forming system 1 from another system or the coating film is formed. Wafer cassette CR such as carrying out from the forming system 1 to another system
The wafer W is transferred between the processing station 11 and the processing station 11.

In the cassette station 10, as shown in FIG. 1, a plurality of (four in the drawing) positioning projections 20a are formed on the cassette mounting table 20 along the X direction in the drawing. Wafer cassette C in position
The Rs can be placed in a line with their respective wafer entrances and exits facing the processing station 11 side. In the wafer cassette CR, the wafers W are arranged in the vertical direction (Z direction). Further, the cassette station 10 has a wafer transfer mechanism 21 located between the cassette mounting table 20 and the processing station 11.

The wafer transfer mechanism 21 has a wafer transfer arm 21a which is movable in the cassette arranging direction (X direction) and in the arranging direction of the wafers W therein (Z direction). This makes it possible to selectively access one of the wafer cassettes CR. Further, the wafer transfer arm 21a is configured to be rotatable in the θ direction shown in FIG. 1, and an alignment unit (ALIM) and an extension unit belonging to a _third processing unit G ₃ on the processing station 11 side described later. You can also access (EXT).

On the other hand, the processing station 11 has a wafer W
A plurality of processing units for carrying out a series of steps for forming a polyimide film on the wafer W are provided, and these are arranged in multiple stages at predetermined positions.
It is processed one by one. This processing station 11 is shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 5, the wafer transfer path 22a is provided in the center, the main wafer transfer mechanism 22 is provided in the wafer transfer path 22a, and all the processing units are arranged around the wafer transfer path 22a. . The plurality of processing units are divided into a plurality of processing units, and each processing unit has a plurality of processing units arranged in multiple stages along the vertical direction (Z direction).

As shown in FIG. 3, the main wafer transfer mechanism 22 is equipped with a wafer transfer device 46 inside the cylindrical support 49 so as to be vertically movable (Z direction). The cylindrical support 49 can be rotated by the rotational driving force of a motor (not shown), and the wafer transfer device 46 can be integrally rotated accordingly. The wafer transfer device 46 is
A plurality of holding members 48 that are movable in the front-rear direction of the transfer base 47 are provided, and these holding members 48 realize the transfer of the wafer W between the processing units.

As shown in FIG. 1, in this coating film forming system 1, four processing sections G ₁ · G ₂ · G ₃ · G _{4 are provided.}
Are actually arranged around the wafer transfer path 22a,
The fifth processing unit G ₅ can be arranged as needed. Of these, the first and second processing units G ₁ and G ₂
Are arranged in parallel on the front side (front side in FIG. 1) of the coating film forming system 1, the third processing section G ₃ is arranged adjacent to the cassette station 10, and the fourth processing section G _{4 is} arranged.
Are arranged adjacent to the interface section 12.
Further, the fifth processing unit G ₅ can be arranged on the back surface.

In the first processing section G ₁ , the coater cup (C
P), a coating unit (COT) which is a spinner type processing unit for performing a predetermined process by placing a wafer W on a spin chuck (not shown), and a chemical solution supply unit (a unit for supplying a predetermined polyimide liquid to the coating unit (COT)). (CS) is stacked in two stages. The second processing unit G ₂ has the same structure as the _first processing unit G ₁ .

The chemical liquid supply unit (CS) has a chemical liquid tank (CT) for containing a bottle (polyimide bottle) filled with a polyimide liquid, a pressure pump (not shown) for pressurizing the chemical liquid tank (CT), and a chemical liquid. A liquid feed pump 54 and the like for feeding the polyimide liquid fed from the chemical liquid tank (CT) to the coating unit (COT) by pressurizing the inside of the tank (CT) are provided.

The polyimide solution is 3000 cps to 1200
Due to the high viscosity of 0 cps, the chemical solution supply unit (C
When the length of the pipe for sending the polyimide liquid from S) to the coating unit (COT) becomes long, the coating unit (COT)
There is a problem in that the discharge accuracy of the polyimide liquid in 1 is not stable, the liquid feeding speed to the coating unit (COT) does not increase, or a large load is applied to the liquid feeding pump 54. However, in the first processing unit G ₁ and the second processing unit G ₂ , the coating unit (COT) and the chemical liquid supply unit (CS) are provided adjacent to each other, so that the chemical liquid supply unit (CS) changes the coating unit (CS). The length of the pipe for feeding the polyimide liquid to (COT) can be shortened, and the above problems can be avoided. The detailed structure of the chemical solution supply unit (CS) will be described later with reference to FIGS. 4 to 6.

In the third processing section G ₃ , as shown in FIG. 3, a plurality of oven-type processing units for stacking the wafer W on the mounting table SP and performing a predetermined processing are stacked.
That is, an adhesion unit (AD) that performs a so-called hydrophobizing process for improving the fixability of a film to be formed, an alignment unit (ALIM) that performs alignment, and an extension unit (EX that carries in and out the wafer W).
T), a cooling unit (COL) that performs cooling processing,
Four hot plate units (HP) that perform a heat treatment on the wafer W coated with the polyimide liquid in a film shape are stacked in eight stages in order from the bottom.

When forming a polyimide film,
Basically, the adhesion unit (AD) is not necessary, but in the coating film forming system 1, the adhesion unit (AD) is attached so that the film formation can be performed using a material other than polyimide. There is.

Alignment unit (ALIM)
Alternatively, a cooling unit (COL) may be provided and the cooling unit (COL) may have an alignment function. Further, as the hot plate unit (HP), there are a low temperature type hot plate unit for removing the solvent contained in the polyimide liquid and evaporating at a relatively low temperature, and a wafer W which has been processed by the low temperature type hot plate unit. A high temperature hot plate unit for baking can be provided.

Also in the fourth processing section G ₄ , oven-type processing units are stacked in multiple stages. That is, a cooling unit (COL), an extension / cooling unit (EXTCOL) that is a wafer loading / unloading unit equipped with a cooling plate, an extension unit (EXT), a cooling unit (COL), and four hot plate units (HP) are located below. In order from 8
It is stacked in columns.

When the fifth processing section G ₅ is provided on the back side of the main wafer transfer mechanism 22, the fifth processing section G ₅ is laterally viewed from the main wafer transfer mechanism 22 along the guide rail 25. You can move to. Therefore, even when the fifth processing unit G ₅ is provided, the space is secured by sliding the fifth processing unit G ₅ along the guide rail 25, which facilitates the maintenance work from behind with respect to the main wafer transfer mechanism 22. It can be carried out.

The interface section 12 has a depth direction (X
(Direction), it has the same length as the processing station 11. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, a portable pickup cassette CR and a stationary buffer cassette BR are arranged in two stages on the front surface of the interface unit 12, and a wafer transfer mechanism 24 is provided in the central portion. In addition, a peripheral edge film removing device 23 that removes the polyimide liquid adhering to the peripheral edge of the wafer W is provided on the back side. The wafer transfer mechanism 24 has a wafer transfer arm 24a, and the wafer transfer arm 24a moves in the X and Z directions to move both cassettes CR and BR and the peripheral film removing device 2.
3 is accessible.

The wafer transfer arm 24a is rotatable in the θ direction and is an extension unit (EXT) belonging to the fourth processing section G ₄ of the processing station 11.
Further, it is possible to access an adjacent processing device (not shown).

In the coating film forming system 1 described above, first, in the cassette station 10, the wafer transfer arm 21a of the wafer transfer mechanism 21 accommodates the wafer W mounted on the cassette mounting table 20. accessing the CR removed one of the wafer W, a third processing unit G ₃ of the extension unit (E
XT).

The wafer W is transferred from the extension unit (EXT) to the alignment unit (ALIM) of the third processing section G ₃ by the wafer transfer device 46 of the main wafer transfer mechanism 22, and is aligned. It is conveyed to the coating unit (COT) by the device 46, where the polyimide liquid is coated and a coating film is formed.

After the coating process is completed, the wafer W is transferred to the alignment unit (ALIM) of the third processing section G ₃ , where it is aligned, and then the wafer W is passed through the extension unit (EXT) of the fourth processing section G _4. And is conveyed to the interface unit 12. The wafer W is transferred to the peripheral film removing device 23 in the interface section 12 to remove the excess polyimide film, and then returned to the interface section 12 again, and is belonging to the _fourth processing section G ₄ by the wafer transfer mechanism 24. Extension unit (E
XT).

Then, the wafer W is transferred to the wafer transfer device 46.
Is carried to one of the hot plate units (HP) to remove the solvent contained in the polyimide liquid that evaporates at a relatively low temperature, and then in the same hot plate unit (HP) or at a higher temperature. The wafer W is transferred to a hot plate unit (HP) capable of heating the wafer W and subjected to a baking process.

The wafer W, which has been baked, is then transferred to a cooling unit (COL) and cooled there. After completion of such a series of processing, the wafer is returned to the cassette station 10 via the extension unit (EXT) of the third processing unit G ₃ and is accommodated in any of the wafer cassettes CR.

Next, the structure of the chemical solution supply unit (CS) will be described in more detail. FIG. 4 shows a schematic front view of the chemical solution supply unit (CS). Further, FIG. 5A is a schematic plan view showing a state in which the chemical solution tank (CT) of the chemical solution supply unit (CS) is drawn out of the coating film forming system 1, and FIG. 5B is a chemical solution supply unit. FIG. 2 is a schematic plan view showing a state in which a chemical solution tank (CT) of (CS) is housed inside the coating film forming system 1.

The chemical liquid supply unit (CS) has two liquid feeding parts 50a and 50b, and the chemical liquid supply unit (C)
In S), a single cart 60 that is commonly used by these liquid sending parts 50a and 50b is provided. A guide rail 71 is provided on the bottom surface of the chemical solution supply unit (CS), and the guide rail 71 is provided on the lower surface of the cart 60.
A guide (not shown) that is fitted with In this way, the cart 60 is slidable in the longitudinal direction of the guide rail 71. Liquid sending part 50a and liquid sending part 50b
Has a structure in which various components are arranged substantially symmetrically. Therefore, the structure of the liquid feeding unit 50a will be described below as an example.

The liquid feeding section 50a includes a chemical liquid tank (CT) capable of accommodating a polyimide bottle 51, a pressure pump 53 for feeding air or the like having a predetermined pressure into the chemical liquid tank (CT), and a polyimide liquid coating unit (COT). Liquid feed pump 54 for feeding liquid to
And a pump 5 for sending the polyimide liquid from the polyimide bottle 51.
4 and a liquid feeding pipe 55 for feeding the liquid to the nozzle 4. The chemical liquid tank (CT) includes a lid 52a, a body portion 52b, and a body portion 5
It is composed of a body holding portion 52c for holding 2b,
The body portion 52b and the body holding portion 52c are joined together, and the lid 5
The 2a and the body portion 52b are detachable. The polyimide liquid is fed from the liquid feed pipe 55 to the liquid feed pump 54 through the pipe 57.

The cart 60 is provided with a vertically extending guide 63 and a vertically elevating mechanism such as an air cylinder 62 that extends and contracts. A connecting member 61a provided so as to fit with the guide 63 is fixed to the air cylinder 62, and the body holding portion 52c is connected to the connecting member 61a via a lever 81. Also, the lid 5
2a is fixed to the guide 63 via a fixing member 61b. As a result, the chemical liquid tank (CT) is held by the cart 60, and the pressurizing pump 53 and the liquid feeding pump 54 are fixed to the cart 60.

When the coating film forming system 1 is in operation, as shown in FIG.
As shown in (b), the cart 60 and the various parts provided on the cart 60 are slid so that the entire parts are housed in the back of the panel surface 1 a of the coating film forming system 1. On the other hand, when the polyimide bottle 51 is emptied and is replaced with a new one, the chemical liquid tank (CT) is placed on the panel surface 1 of the coating film forming system 1 as shown in FIG.
Cart 60 so that it is pulled out from a.
Slide. In this way, the polyimide bottle 51 can be easily replaced.

Whether the cart 60 is inside the coating film forming system 1 or when the cart 60 is pulled out from the coating film forming system 1 by a predetermined distance, the cart 60 can be used.
It is preferable to provide a lock mechanism capable of fixing the lock at a predetermined position.

In the chemical liquid supply unit (CS), the air cylinder 62 of the liquid feeding portion 50a and the air cylinder of the liquid feeding portion 50b are arranged side by side in the X direction, while other chemical liquid tanks (CT) and liquid feeding pumps are arranged. By arranging the constituent members such as 54 so as to be substantially symmetrical in the Y direction, it is possible to shorten the length in the Y direction of the chemical liquid supply unit (CS). In this way, it is possible to arrange two chemical solution tanks (CT) in one chemical solution supply unit (CS), and at the same time, a structure that facilitates replacement of the polyimide bottle 51 is realized.

Further, the chemical liquid tank (CT) of the liquid feeding section 50a
The chemical solution tank (CT) of the liquid transfer unit 50b may contain a polyimide bottle 51 filled with a polyimide solution of the same standard, or a polyimide bottle 51 filled with a polyimide solution of a different standard. Good. When the liquid transfer units 50a and 50b handle polyimide liquids having different specifications, the coating unit (COT) is provided with a discharge nozzle for supplying the polyimide liquid to the wafer W exclusively for each liquid transfer unit 50a and 50b. preferable. In this case, it becomes possible to easily deal with the processing of the wafer W, for example, when it is necessary to form polyimide films having different film thicknesses.

As shown in FIG. 5A, the chemical liquid tank (C
When T) is pulled out of the coating film forming system 1, the air cylinder 62 is driven to integrally move the connecting member 61a, the body portion 52b, and the body holding portion 52c between the upper position and the lower position. It is possible to raise and lower with. In FIG. 4, the state where the body holding portion 52c and the like are in the upper stage position is shown by a solid line, and the state where the body holding portion 52c and the like is in the lower stage position is shown by a dotted line. The position where the position of the back surface of the body holding portion 52c is close to the floor surface can be the lower position.

The air cylinder 62 is driven by the cart 60.
The operation unit 60a provided in the. For example, the operation unit 60a is provided with a switch (direction switch) for designating the ascending / descending direction and a switch (drive switch) for driving the air cylinder 62 separately for each of the liquid feeding units 50a and 50b, and the operator drives The air cylinder 62 may be driven only while the switch is held in the ON state. In addition, in each drawing of FIG.
Is not shown.

As shown in FIG. 4, when the body portion 52b and the body holding portion 52c are in the upper position, the liquid feed pipe 55.
Is inserted into the inside of the polyimide bottle 51, and the upper surface of the body portion 52b is closed by the lid body 52a so that the chemical liquid tank (CT) can be sealed. The lid 52a and the body portion 52b are fixed by, for example, a clamp. When the pressure pump 53 is operated to pressurize the inside of the chemical liquid tank (CT) in such a state, pressure is applied to the liquid surface of the polyimide liquid in the polyimide bottle 51, and the polyimide liquid is pushed out from the liquid supply pipe 55. In this way, the liquid is fed to the liquid feed pump 54 through the pipe 57 provided between the liquid feed pipe 55 and the liquid feed pump 54.

Since the viscosity of the polyimide solution is high, in the pressure-feeding by the pressure pump 53, the pressure loss increases as the length of the pipe 57 increases, and the polyimide solution can be fed to the solution-feeding pump 54 at a predetermined speed. become unable. In this case, there arises a problem that the time for applying the polyimide solution to one wafer W becomes long, that is, the processing time per wafer W becomes long.

However, in the chemical liquid supply unit (CS), the lid 52a and the liquid feed pump 54 are fixed adjacent to each other, and the pipe 57 is fixed at the shortest distance. The polyimide liquid can be sent from the liquid sending pipe 55 to the liquid sending pump 54 at a speed. This gives 1
It is possible to shorten the time for applying the polyimide solution to the wafers W and improve the throughput.

In the chemical liquid supply unit (CS), a regulator (not shown) is provided in the middle of the pipe between the pressurizing pump 53 and the lid 52a, and the chemical liquid tank (C
The inside of T) can always be maintained at a constant pressure. In this state, pressure is applied to the polyimide liquid so that the polyimide liquid is constantly pushed out from the liquid supply pipe 55. Therefore, the pipe between the liquid supply pipe 55 and the liquid supply pump 54 or the liquid supply pump 54 and the coating unit (COT). An electromagnetic valve or the like is provided in a pipe between the polyimide solution and the above) to keep the polyimide solution from being delivered when the polyimide solution is not required to be delivered.

Further, in the middle of the pipe 57 between the liquid feeding pipe 55 and the liquid feeding pump 54, a sensor (liquid shortage sensor) (not shown) for monitoring the liquid feeding state of the polyimide liquid is provided. For example, the liquid shortage sensor may be configured such that the air feed pump 54
When the state in which the coating film is being sent to is detected, an interlock is applied so as to stop the operation of a predetermined unit associated with the coating film forming system 1.

Further, when the liquid shortage sensor detects the liquid shortage, air is contained in the pipe 57. Therefore, in order to send the polyimide liquid not mixed with air to the coating unit (COT), An air bleeding mechanism (not shown) for removing the air in the pipe 57 is provided at 57.

When the body portion 52b and the body holding portion 52c are in the lower position, the tip of the liquid supply pipe 55 is the polyimide bottle 51.
Since it exits from the room, the polyimide bottle 51 can be replaced. When moving the body portion 52b and the body holding portion 52c from the upper position to the lower position, it is necessary to release the pressure in the chemical liquid tank (CT), and therefore the lid 52a is provided with the pressure release valve 58. There is.

When the polyimide bottle 51 is pulled out right above, the polyimide bottle 51 hits the liquid supply pipe 55.
There is a risk of damaging the liquid supply pipe 55 or the polyimide bottle 51. Therefore, in order to facilitate replacement of the polyimide bottle 51, the body portion 52b and the body holding portion 52c can be tilted by a predetermined angle. FIG. 6 is an explanatory view showing the positions of the body portion 52b and the body holding portion 52c when the polyimide bottle 51 is replaced.

A groove portion 82 is formed in the connecting member 61a, and one end of the lever 81 is provided with a knob portion 83 having a predetermined length in a direction perpendicular to the paper surface so that the lever portion 81 can be caught in the groove portion 82. . The other end of the lever 81 is attached to the body holding portion 52c but is not fixed,
The lever 81 is rotatable around the connecting portion. The operator follows the shape of the groove 82 with the knob 83.
Is moved to the upper side and then lowered to the lower end of the groove portion 82, whereby the body portion 52b and the body holding portion 52c can be inclined at a predetermined angle, for example, 8 degrees. The inclination angles of the body portion 52b and the body holding portion 52c depend on the shapes of the polyimide bottle 51, the body portion 52b and the body holding portion 52c, and the body portion 52b and the body holding portion 5
Suitable conditions are appropriately determined depending on the height difference between the lower position and the upper position where 2c is held.

In this state, the liquid supply pipe 55 is connected to the body portion 52b.
Since it is located on the outer side of, the polyimide bottle 51 can be prevented from coming into contact with the liquid supply pipe 55 when the polyimide bottle 51 is replaced. The new polyimide bottle 51 has a body portion 52b.
Once accommodated inside, the operator can fix the position of the lever 81 by moving the knob 83 upward along the shape of the groove 82 and then obliquely downward.

The method of operating the chemical solution supply unit (CS) will be described below by taking as an example the case where the polyimide bottle 51 used in the liquid feeding section 50a becomes empty and it is necessary to replace it with a new polyimide bottle 51. . First, the operator opens the panel surface 1a on the entire surface of the chemical liquid supply unit (CS) to release the lock mechanism of the cart 60, pulls out the cart 60 to the front, and locks the cart 60 again at a predetermined position.
The pressure inside the chemical liquid tank (CT) is adjusted to, for example, an external pressure by operating the regulator to prevent air from being sent from the pressurizing pump 53 to the chemical liquid tank (CT) and then operating the pressure release valve 58. Try to be the same.

The clamp fixing the lid 52a and the body portion 52b is removed, and the body portion 52b and the body holding portion 52c are removed.
After making it possible to descend, set the direction switch for the liquid feeding unit 50a provided in the operation unit 60a to the descending direction,
The drive switch of the air cylinder 62 is turned on to lower the body portion 52b and the body holding portion 52c to the lower position.
When the body portion 52b descends to the lower position, the liquid feeding pipe 55 is exposed, but here, the polyimide liquid adhering to the liquid feeding pipe 55 does not drip and the body portion 52b and the polyimide bottle 51 are not contaminated. First, if necessary, the polyimide liquid adhering to the liquid supply pipe 55 is removed.

Next, the knob 83 provided on the lever 81
Is moved along the shape of the groove portion 82 to incline the body portion 52b and the body holding portion 52c by a predetermined angle. In this state, the empty polyimide bottle 51 and the new polyimide bottle 51 filled with the polyimide liquid are replaced. In that case,
Since the body portion 52b and the body holding portion 52c are close to the floor surface, it is not necessary to lift the polyimide bottle 51 high.
You can work safely.

When the replacement of the polyimide bottle 51 is completed, the knob portion 83 is moved along the shape of the groove portion 82 to move the body portion 5
2b and the body holding portion 52c are returned to their original postures, and the liquid feeding pipe 55
It is confirmed whether or not the tip of is in a position where it can be inserted from the mouth of the polyimide bottle 51. The direction switch of the operation portion 60a is set to the upward direction to turn on the drive switch, and the body portion 52b and the body holding portion 52c are raised to the upper position.

The body 52c and the lid 52a are fixed by a clamp, the regulator is set to a predetermined pressure, and the liquid feeding pipe 5
When air bubbles are mixed in the pipe 57 between the liquid delivery pump 54 and the liquid delivery pump 54, after removing the air bubbles, the cart 60 is unlocked and the cart 60 is pushed into the coating film forming system 1. Lock the cart 60 in place. When the panel surface 1a is closed, the polyimide film forming process can be restarted.

Although the present invention has been described above by taking the coating film forming system as an example, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment. For example, the liquid feed pipe 55 and the pipe 5
7 is described as a separate member, but the tip of the pipe 57 may be configured to be insertable into the polyimide bottle 51 housed in the chemical liquid tank (CT). Further, instead of the pressurizing pump 53, air having a predetermined pressure may be directly supplied to the chemical liquid tank (CT) from a factory pipe or the like to which air having a predetermined pressure is supplied. Further, the lid body 52a does not necessarily have to be fixed to the guide 63 as long as it is fixed to the cart 60 at a predetermined position, and the shape of the cart 60 can be variously changed to fix the lid body 52a. It is also possible to provide another column or the like on the column 60 and fix the lid 52a to this column.

As an elevating mechanism for elevating the body portion 52b and the body holding portion 52c, instead of the air cylinder 62,
A ball screw may be used, and the body portion 52b and the body holding portion 52c can be moved up and down by driving the belt. The mechanism for inclining the body portion 52b and the body holding portion 52c has been exemplified by a mechanism manually operated by an operator, but a mechanism using an air cylinder or the like can also be adopted.

In the coating film forming system 1, since the coating unit (COT) is arranged in the upper stage, the chemical liquid supply unit (CS) is arranged in the middle stage. Therefore, the chemical liquid supply unit (CS) is arranged in the chemical liquid supply unit (CS). An elevating mechanism for elevating the tank (CT) is provided.
If T) is arranged in the middle stage and the chemical solution supply unit (CS) is arranged in the lower stage, an elevating mechanism for elevating the chemical solution tank (CT) is not necessary. Also in this case, the chemical solution tank (CT)
By arranging the liquid feed pump 54 and the liquid feed pump 54 adjacent to each other, the length of the pipe 57 between the chemical liquid tank (CT) and the liquid feed pump 54 can be shortened to increase the liquid feed speed. It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the coating film forming system 1 and is not limited to the polyimide liquid, and is a liquid treatment that handles other treatment liquids such as a resist liquid and a treatment liquid for an antireflection film. It can be applied to all devices.

Further, in the above embodiment, the apparatus for processing a semiconductor wafer has been described, but the present invention can be applied to an apparatus for processing substrates other than wafers, for example, LCD substrates, mask substrates, reticle substrates and the like. Is possible.

[0061]

As described above, according to the liquid processing apparatus of the present invention, the length of the pipe between the tank for storing the processing liquid and the liquid feeding pump can be shortened. It is possible to increase the speed. This makes it possible to shorten the coating time of the processing liquid per substrate and improve the throughput of the liquid processing. Further, when the liquid processing unit for performing liquid processing and the processing liquid supply unit for sending the processing liquid to the liquid processing unit are provided adjacent to each other, the length of the pipe from the processing liquid supply unit to the liquid processing unit Can be shortened, and thereby the accuracy of discharging the processing liquid onto the substrate can be improved. Furthermore, when a plurality of tanks for storing the treatment liquid are provided in the treatment liquid supply unit, it is possible to easily deal with a plurality of liquid treatments using different treatment liquids. When the treatment liquid supply unit is at a predetermined height above the floor surface, by providing an elevating mechanism for raising and lowering the tank that stores the treatment liquid, the treatment liquid can be easily and safely exchanged. Like

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view showing a schematic configuration of an embodiment of a coating film forming system according to a liquid processing apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a front view showing a schematic configuration of an embodiment of a coating film forming system according to the liquid processing apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a rear view showing a schematic configuration of an embodiment of a coating film forming system according to the liquid processing apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a schematic front view of a chemical solution supply unit (CS) provided in the coating film forming system.

FIG. 5 is a schematic plan view of a chemical solution supply unit (CS) provided in the coating film forming system.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory view showing a tilted form of a body portion and a body holding portion which form a chemical liquid tank (CT).

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a liquid feeding method when a polyimide liquid is applied to a semiconductor wafer.

[Explanation of symbols]

1; Coating film forming system 50a / 50b; liquid transfer section 51; Polyimide bottle 52a; lid 52b; body part 52c; body holding portion 53; Pressurizing pump 54; Liquid feeding pump 55; Liquid transfer pipe 57; Piping 58; Pressure relief valve 60; Cart 61a; connecting member 62; Air cylinder 71; Guide rail CS: Chemical supply unit CT; chemical solution tank COT; coating unit

   ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued front page    (72) Inventor Yasuhiro Takagi             TBS release, 5-3-6 Akasaka, Minato-ku, Tokyo             Sending Center Tokyo Electron Limited F-term (reference) 4F042 AA07 BA03 BA06 BA08 BA10                       CA03 CB02 CB03 CB11 CB18                 5F046 JA03

Claims (9)

[Claims] 1. A liquid processing unit that supplies a predetermined processing liquid to a substrate to perform liquid processing, a processing liquid supply unit that supplies the processing liquid to the liquid processing unit, the liquid processing unit, and the processing liquid supply. A housing for holding the processing unit, the processing liquid supply unit includes a tank capable of filling the processing liquid, and a liquid delivery pump for delivering the processing liquid filled in the tank to the liquid processing unit. And a cart in which the tank and the liquid feed pump are mounted adjacent to each other, and a liquid treatment apparatus. 2. The processing liquid supply unit includes a pressurizing unit for pressurizing the inside of the tank, and the processing liquid in the tank when the inside of the tank is pressurized by the pressurizing unit. The liquid processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a liquid sending pipe attached to the tank so as to send a liquid to a pump. 3. The processing liquid supply unit further includes a cart moving mechanism that moves the cart so that the tank can be moved between a protruding position where the tank protrudes from the housing and a predetermined storage position in the housing. The liquid processing apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising: 4. The treatment liquid supply unit is provided below and adjacent to the liquid treatment unit.
4. The liquid processing apparatus according to claim 3. 5. The processing liquid supply unit is provided at a position at a predetermined height from a floor surface on which the housing is arranged, according to any one of claims 1 to 4. The liquid processing apparatus according to item 1. 6. The liquid supply pipe, wherein the tank has a body portion having an open top surface for housing the container filled with the processing liquid, and a lid body closing the top surface of the body portion. Is attached to the lid body, The liquid processing apparatus according to claim 1. 7. The processing liquid supply unit further comprises an elevating mechanism for elevating and lowering a body portion of the tank between an upper position and a lower position when the tank is at the projecting position, and the tank lid body. Is fixed to the cart, the upper surface of the body is closed by the lid when the body of the tank is in the upper position, and the tip of the liquid delivery pipe is inserted into the container. It becomes possible to feed the treatment liquid to the liquid feed pump, and when the body is in the lower position, the tip of the liquid feed pipe can be withdrawn from the container and the container can be replaced. The liquid processing apparatus according to claim 6, which is characterized in that. 8. The processing liquid supply unit further comprises a body part tilting mechanism for tilting the body part at a predetermined angle when the body part of the tank is at the lower position. The liquid processing apparatus according to claim 7. 9. The liquid processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein one set of the tank and a plurality of the liquid feed pumps can be mounted on the cart.